Wednesday, May 02, 2007

Drilling Holes

Chiziyah taught, "Israel is like a scattered sheep." When one of a sheep's organs become affected, all its organs are affected. Similarly, all of Israel may suffer retribution because of one Jew's sins.

Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai taught, "This can be likened to a group traveling aboard a ship. One of the travelers begins to drill a hole in the floor beneath him. His companions cry out, ' What are you doing?'

'What do you care?' he responds, 'I'm only drilling beneath my seat!'

'But the ship will become flooded and all of us will drown' the others retort.